“I told them…” FC Plzen boss reveals tactic that embarasses Manchester United star, it almost worked

FC Plzen manager Miroslav Koubek revealed a tactic he enforced that embarrasses one Manchester United star, and it almost worked.

Manchester United earned a crucial 2-1 victory against FC Viktoria Plzeň in the Europa League, with Rasmus Højlund’s brace securing the three points for Rúben Amorim’s side.

The match began with United dominating possession, but a lack of precision in their passing and frequent miscommunication prevented them from breaking down a resilient Plzeň defence.

Read More: Rasmus Højlund reveals interesting Man United line-up decision Ruben Amorim is making after Viktoria Plzen win

A calamitous error from André Onana gifted the home side the lead early in the second half, leaving United with work to do. The response came quickly, as Amad Diallo’s brilliant run and shot forced a save, allowing Højlund to pounce on the rebound and level the game.

United pushed for a winner as time dwindled. Mason Mount missed a clear chance to take the lead, but Bruno Fernandes, yet again, rose to the occasion. The skipper’s perfectly timed pass found Højlund, who fired home the decisive goal in the dying minutes.

The victory lifts United into the top eight of the Europa League, putting them on course to bypass the play-off stage in the new year.

Plzen’s embarrassing tactic

While Plzen’s overall idea was to go man-for-man with United when the visitors had possession, there was a second tactic manager Miroslav Koubek had in mind that almost worked a treat.

Onana’s blunder handed the home side their initial lead, and Koubek was asked after the game if he had instructed his side to pressure Onana and target shots at him.

“Yes. That was our tactic, I told them to shoot from every viable opportunity,” he revealed. “I’m disappointed with the last shot, maybe we could have resolved it a bit better.”

Onana has not had a fantastic record in Europe over the last 18 months at the club, and it’s a slight embarrassment on his part that he is still seen as such as weak link in the side.

Onana’s mistake vs Plzen

Despite Onana being the obvious man to blame against Plzen for the goal they conceded, former United midfielder Owen Hargreaves explained that Matthijs de Ligt is also at fault.

He explained: “Both Andre Onana and Matthijs de Ligt could be at fault there, but Onana a little bit more.

“De Ligt really didn’t want the ball. In the end, Onana plays a poor pass. But Ruben Amorim wants his centre-backs to go in there and recieve the ball.

“De Ligt is not comfortable receiving it on the half turn and Onana plays a poor ball and on the wrong side.

“It’s difficult position for a centre-back to be in, [But] if the manager tells you to do something, you are going to do it.”

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